In current practice, artificial flowers are arranged at a florist shop by inserting the artificial flower stems into a cone or rectangular shaped floral foam piece for use in a cemetery. The problem is that there is not a standard vase size or a standard foam size. Most often, the foam must be cut or carved to fit into a cemetery vase. A major complaint received by cemetery employees is that of missing flower bouquets. Most often the culprit is the wind blowing the flowers away.
As the wind blows, the foam that is inside the vase begins to sway back and forth and slowly wears away as it scrapes the inside of the vase. Eventually, the wind will cause the flower bouquet to fly out of the vase. Another problem with the use of foam is that foam is porous and buoyant. Once the foam is placed into a vase, the water from rain seeps through the foam and fills the vase. As water fills the vase, there is upward pressure against the foam which forces the foam to float. The buoyant foam will eventually be pushed out of the vase by the rising water or blown out by the wind.